Whittaker out of the title defense in UFC 234

MELBOURNE, Australia – UFC middleweight Australian champ Robert Whittaker retired against the Kelvin Gastelum last Sunday against UFC 234 due to an abdominal injury and a subsequent emergency response.

UFC president Dana White says the 29-year-old Whittaker, who has a 20-4 record, got sick on Saturday night and complained of abdominal pain before being diagnosed in a hospital with a # 39; hernia.

In a subsequent statement, UFC stated that Whittaker underwent urgent surgery due to a "severe abdominal lesion".

The highly anticipated match of number 1 contenders between the nascent New Zealand star Israel Adesanya (15-0) and the Brazilian veteran Anderson Silva (34-8) will now serve as the main event on the Rod Laver Arena.

High on paper was the light encounter between the American Lando Vannata and the Brazilian Marcos Mariano.

Tickets for the 15,000-seat arena are sold out in eight minutes. UFC has offered full refunds due to the cancellation of the main period.

It marks the second time that Whittaker has been forced to retire from a title fight in Australia. The injuries prevented him from fighting Luke Rockhold at UCFC 221 in Perth last year.

At the beginning of this week, White had declared that the winners of the Whittaker-Gastelum and Adesanya-Silva struggles would meet at the end of this year.